CVE-2026-98511
Received Received - Intake

Memory Corruption in Nouveau Linux Kernel Driver

Publication date: 2026-10-18

Last updated on: 2026-10-18

Assigner: kernel.org

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: drm/nouveau: don't bump pin count on failed re-pin in nouveau_bo_pin_locked() nouveau_bo_pin_locked() checks whether an already pinned BO is in a memory domain compatible with a new pin request. When the domains are incompatible, it sets -EBUSY but still calls ttm_bo_pin() before returning. Callers treat a failed nouveau_bo_pin() as not having acquired a new pin, so the extra pin count is never decreased by a matching unpin. This triggers the warning in ttm_bo_release(): WARN_ON_ONCE(bo->pin_count); Found when fuzzing the nouveau driver with a modified Syzkaller: WARNING: drivers/gpu/drm/ttm/ttm_bo.c:256 at ttm_bo_release+0x827/0x9e0 drivers/gpu/drm/ttm/ttm_bo.c:256, CPU#1: syz.3.24/2212 Modules linked in: CPU: 1 UID: 0 PID: 2212 Comm: syz.3.24 Not tainted 7.2.0 #24 PREEMPT(lazy) nouveau 0000:01:00.0: gsp:msg fn:103 len:0x40/0x20 res:0x19 resp:0x19 Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 1.16.3-debian-1.16.3-2 04/01/2014 RIP: 0010:ttm_bo_release+0x827/0x9e0 drivers/gpu/drm/ttm/ttm_bo.c:256 Code: 02 00 0f 85 51 01 00 00 48 8b 7b 08 e8 d2 20 01 00 e9 80 fd ff ff e8 d8 15 c0 fe 90 0f 0b 90 e9 e1 f8 ff ff e8 ca 15 c0 fe 90 <0f> 0b 90 e9 a4 f8 ff ff e8 bc 15 c0 fe be 03 00 00 00 4c 89 e7 e8 msg: 00000000: 05 00 d0 c1 04 00 f0 f1 01 30 00 00 2d 90 00 00 .........0..-... RSP: 0018:ffffc9000f5cf710 EFLAGS: 00010293 RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ffff888018e5d2a8 RCX: ffffffff82bb1b36 RDX: ffff888017b68000 RSI: 0000000000000004 RDI: ffff888018e5d2a8 msg: 00000010: 19 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ................ RBP: ffff88801261c720 R08: 0000000000000001 R09: ffffed10031cba55 R10: ffff888018e5d2ab R11: 00000000000000f3 R12: ffff888018e5d290 R13: ffff888018e5d2d4 R14: ffff88801b219c18 R15: dffffc0000000000 FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffff8880e0f6f000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 0000001b31223ffc CR3: 0000000028e00005 CR4: 0000000000770ef0 PKRU: 80000000 Call Trace: <TASK> kref_put include/linux/kref.h:65 [inline] ttm_bo_put drivers/gpu/drm/ttm/ttm_bo.c:325 [inline] ttm_bo_fini+0x55/0x80 drivers/gpu/drm/ttm/ttm_bo.c:330 nouveau_gem_object_del+0xb2/0x1b0 drivers/gpu/drm/nouveau/nouveau_gem.c:90 drm_gem_object_free+0x5f/0x90 drivers/gpu/drm/drm_gem.c:1165 kref_put include/linux/kref.h:65 [inline] __drm_gem_object_put include/drm/drm_gem.h:562 [inline] drm_gem_object_put include/drm/drm_gem.h:575 [inline] nouveau_abi16_chan_fini.constprop.0+0x44f/0x5a0 drivers/gpu/drm/nouveau/nouveau_abi16.c:195 nouveau 0000:01:00.0: syz.2.23[2209]: Unknown handle 0x00000000 nouveau_abi16_fini+0x1d0/0x340 drivers/gpu/drm/nouveau/nouveau_abi16.c:225 nouveau_drm_postclose+0x18b/0x3e0 drivers/gpu/drm/nouveau/nouveau_drm.c:1284 nouveau 0000:01:00.0: syz.2.23[2209]: validate_init drm_file_free.part.0+0x6d6/0xb60 drivers/gpu/drm/drm_file.c:267 drm_file_free drivers/gpu/drm/drm_file.c:237 [inline] drm_close_helper.isra.0+0x11a/0x160 drivers/gpu/drm/drm_file.c:290 drm_release+0x1ab/0x330 drivers/gpu/drm/drm_file.c:438 __fput+0x39c/0xa60 fs/file_table.c:512 nouveau 0000:01:00.0: syz.2.23[2209]: validate: -2 task_work_run+0x15a/0x230 kernel/task_work.c:233 exit_task_work include/linux/task_work.h:40 [inline] do_exit+0x82b/0x25a0 kernel/exit.c:1009 do_group_exit+0xc2/0x280 kernel/exit.c:1152 get_signal+0x1d6e/0x1f30 kernel/signal.c:3046 arch_do_signal_or_restart+0x7d/0x6e0 arch/x86/kernel/signal.c:337 __exit_to_user_mode_loop kernel/entry/common.c:66 [inline] exit_to_user_mode_loop+0xdf/0x440 kernel/entry/common.c:101 __exit_to_user_mode_prepare include/linux/irq-entry-common.h:207 [inline] syscall_exit_to_user_mode_prepare include/linux/irq-entry-common.h:230 [inline] syscall_exit_to_user_mode include/linux/entry-common.h:318 [inline] do_syscall_64+0x4f8/0x690 arch/x86/entry/syscall_64.c:100 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f RI ---truncated---

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

Probability:
Percentile:

Meta Information

Published
2026-10-18
Last Modified
2026-10-18
Generated
2026-10-18
AI Q&A
2026-10-18
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-98511
EUVD
EUVD-2026-103751

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 8 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
Linux Linux ad76b3f7c7a0836e74ac0e316e03988ef3c43564
Linux Linux ad76b3f7c7a0836e74ac0e316e03988ef3c43564
Linux Linux ad76b3f7c7a0836e74ac0e316e03988ef3c43564
Linux Linux ad76b3f7c7a0836e74ac0e316e03988ef3c43564
Linux Linux ad76b3f7c7a0836e74ac0e316e03988ef3c43564
Linux Linux ad76b3f7c7a0836e74ac0e316e03988ef3c43564
Linux Linux ad76b3f7c7a0836e74ac0e316e03988ef3c43564
Linux Linux 3.19

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
CWE Icon
KEV
KEV Icon
CWE ID Description
CWE-UNKNOWN

Attack-Flow Graph

AI Quick Actions

Instant insights powered by AI
Executive Summary

This vulnerability in the Linux kernel's Nouveau driver occurs when a buffer object (BO) is pinned to an incompatible memory domain. The function nouveau_bo_pin_locked() sets an error code but still calls ttm_bo_pin(), which increments the pin count. Since the pin operation fails, the pin count is never decremented, leading to a mismatch between the actual and expected pin state. This triggers a warning in ttm_bo_release() due to the unexpected pin count.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability is specific to the Linux kernel's Nouveau driver and requires kernel-level detection. Monitor kernel logs for warnings like 'WARN_ON_ONCE(bo->pin_count)' in ttm_bo_release(). Check for Nouveau driver crashes or GPU-related errors. Use 'dmesg | grep -i nouveau' or 'journalctl -k | grep -i nouveau' to inspect kernel logs for anomalies.

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability can cause system instability or crashes when using the Nouveau graphics driver. It may lead to memory corruption or unexpected behavior in GPU operations, potentially affecting graphical applications or rendering tasks. Systems using Nouveau for display or graphics processing are at risk.

Mitigation Strategies

Apply the latest kernel updates from your Linux distribution to patch the Nouveau driver issue. If Nouveau is not required, disable it by blacklisting the module with 'echo 'blacklist nouveau' | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-nouveau.conf' and reboot. Alternatively, switch to a different GPU driver if available.

Chat Assistant

Ask questions about this CVE
Hi! I’m here to help you understand CVE-2026-98511. Ask me anything about the vulnerability, its impact, or mitigation strategies.
0/70

EPSS Chart